Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Putting the Ninja to Work

I know some of you have been waiting to hear more about the Ninja Master Prep that I was lucky enough to be whisked away to NYC to see being demonstrated this time last month. I received a truckload of boxes from Euro-Pro a couple of weeks ago and have been slowly but surely trying everything out so I can tell you about the products from my own point of view. I had kind of hoped everything would trickle in over a couple of months but instead I received three vacuum cleaners, two steamers and, of course, the Ninja Master Prep all at once! I was a bit overwhelmed initially but I have finally gotten the chance to use everything so I will write up my thoughts soon.

First off, the Ninja Master Prep. We've used it several times already to make pesto (using the end-of-season garden basil) and salsa verde (using the end-of-season garden tomatillos and tomatoes). I finally remembered to take some pictures while using it to make zucchini/banana muffins for Roo's class. (I am on the healthy snack committee and the kids especially like home-baked goods, even if we use whole grains and less sugar!)

If you're like me, you are probably wondering why it's called the Ninja. After using it at home several times, I think I know. Witness the twin blades of doom:

These things are razor sharp and come apart from the shaft for easy cleaning. I think they look a bit like ninja throwing stars when they're assembled and they certainly do their job efficiently. The zucchini from our garden didn't stand a chance when pitted against the Ninja Master Prep:

Nor did these walnuts:

In fact, when you're using the Ninja Master Prep, you have to be careful to use short pulses instead of pushing down on the button because it will completely pulverize whatever you put into it within a few short seconds. Since I didn't want walnut meal, I only pulsed once or twice.

One of the things that I especially like about the Ninja Master Prep is that the motor is housed in a unit that you attach to the tops of the chopping containers. It does not power on unless the lids are locked and everything is in its place, which is comforting since the blades are incredibly sharp. I haven't been a victim of the Ninja yet but Bob managed to slice his hand a bit, I think when he was pulling the blades out to rinse. You'd think he'd know better than to mess with a Ninja!

The Ninja Master Prep made the zucchini totally disappear into lovely moist muffins. I peeled them before chopping so there wouldn't be any sign for the green-phobic six and under set. See? They just look like normal banana-walnut muffins:

I like the versatility that the Ninja Master Prep offers with its two cup bowl and 48 oz pitcher. Having two containers that you can attach the motor unit to means you can work on different items at the same time without stopping to wash and dry vessels. The pitcher has a hinged spout lid which is nice because it can vent when you're blending hot things. It's hard to beat the Ninja's ease of cleaning since the blade assembly comes out and apart for hand or machine dishwashing. I also like the fact that it comes with storage lids that you can pop off if you decide not to use everything all at once. Replacement parts are readily available, so you could also stock up on extra bowls or pitchers if you do a lot of chopping and blending. The price is also pretty reasonable: $59.85, including shipping.

Disclosure: I received a Ninja Master Prep to try out and my flight and one night of hotel accomodations were paid for during the NYC launch event. However, Euro-Pro has not asked me to write this review and has nothing to do with my opinions. If the Ninja sucked, I would say so.

I was at a program with fellow Ninja recipient @ConsumerKing and we were chatting about how much we enjoy our Ninjas. We've bee using ours several times a week. I came close to cutting my hand on one of the blades (love your pic, BTW), but so far so good. I won't let me kids near the blades, but I love that they can help out with it. because the motor is not attached directly to the blads.